Satellite signals intended for earth reception, and in particular those used for wide area audio/video/data communication, are typically low power and highly directional in nature. Although a satellite may offer coverage over a large geographical area, such as the United States, earth stations that want to receive the satellite signals must point their antennas directly at the satellite. That is, even though the earth station is within the footprint of the satellite, it is necessary for the antenna of the earth station be aligned with the satellite in order to receive the signal from the satellite. Because of the generally low power of many broad area satellite transmissions, it is necessary in many systems to use an antenna (whether flat or reflector type) having a relatively large aperture or size. The various procedures that must be performed when aligning an earth station antenna can be time consuming and inconvenient. Additionally, any obstructions in the path between the satellite and the earth station will disrupt signal reception at the earth station.
Due to the size and position-sensitive nature of the placement of the earth station, even “portable” earth stations are somewhat restricted in their movement and placement. Although many earth stations are small and light enough to be considered portable, they still require either proper antenna alignment or an expensive, large and complicated tracking antenna mechanism. Suitable antennas may also be relatively large and heavy in comparison to other receiver components. Therefore, it would be desirable to access satellite information, in a highly portable manner, without the restriction of a fixed earth station installation or the position-sensitive characteristics of portable earth stations.